


The Journey to Gold

by searchingwardrobes



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: 2018 Winter Olympics, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Friends to Lovers, pairs figure skating
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-11
Updated: 2018-02-21
Packaged: 2019-03-16 15:57:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,671
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13639509
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/searchingwardrobes/pseuds/searchingwardrobes
Summary: Emma is 9 and Killian is 12 when they are forced together as pairs partners. Just a little ficlet of our babies growing up together as pairs figure skaters. Inspired by watching the Winter Olympics, of course.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This was partially inspired by the real life love story of Ekaterina Goordeeva and Sergei Gringov. I grew up watching them skate in the 80s and was devastated as a teenager to learn Sergei had died suddenly of a rare heart condition at only 28 years of age. I then read the book My Sergei that she wrote about how they fell in love. A couple of things from that book came back to me when I was writing this. Minus the sudden death, so don't worry, this is pure fluff.

              Emma is 9 and Killian is 12 when they are forced together as pairs partners. Emma is pissed that her coach/foster mother thinks she’ll do better in pairs than in singles, and it shows in the tilt of her chin and the way her lips are pressed in a thin line. Killian laughs with a cocky grin, then scoffs and calls her a baby. When she shoves him, he doesn’t see it coming.

              Emma finally smiles when his butt hits the ice.

                             ***************************************************

              Emma is 10 and Killian is 13 when the bullying he gets for being a figure skater reaches its peak. He comes to practice late one afternoon dirty and covered in bruises with a deep cut across his cheek from the blade of a hockey skate. At the ER it takes ten stitches to close up the wound.

              The next day, Ingrid has to pull Emma off one of the hockey players who had pinned Killian down in the parking lot. But not before she breaks his nose.

              Killian decides Emma isn’t a baby after all.

                             ***************************************************

              Emma is 12 and Killian is 15 when she invites him to her birthday party. It ends up lame since her skating leaves her so little time to make friends. It’s mostly just Ingrid and Ingrid’s two nieces Elsa and Anna who skate singles at the rink. (Or else Emma wouldn’t know them either.) Killian said he would come, and Emma hates that she keeps glancing out the apartment window looking for him. His brother Liam calls and tells her Killian has the flu and a fever of a 104.

              Emma tries to pretend she isn’t disappointed.

              Later, Emma dashes down the three flights of stairs in their building when she sees Liam’s car pull up to the curb outside. Liam complains about his stubborn git of a little brother who insists on bringing Emma her present even though he’s sweating and shivering with fever. Emma has to talk to her partner through the closed car window because Ingrid and Liam don’t want her getting sick too. Killian’s gift to her is a giant purple teddy bear.

              Emma gets to where she can’t sleep without it.

                            ******************************************************

              Emma is 16 and Killian is 19 when they come out of seemingly nowhere to win the US National Championships. It also just so happens to be an Olympic year. It’s a huge upset, edging out the veterans. But the media seems more enamored with their good looks and (non-existent) love lives than their athleticism. The constant speculation that they’re more than friends drives Emma crazy, especially when it’s described as “adorable” because of their youth.

              When they get to Vancouver, one sportscaster interviews Emma in a sickly-sweet, condescending voice like Emma is six instead of sixteen. She asks Emma if she has a boyfriend, and Emma can hear Killian beside her biting back a laugh. Emma just stops herself from rolling her eyes when she answers, “No.”

              “What about Killian?”

              Emma hates herself when she blushes. On international television.

              Their short program is flawless, but all the scrutiny finally gets to Emma for their free skate. She singles a triple jump, gets out of sync with Killian, and puts a hand down when she lands her throw. Emma blames herself when they don’t medal.

              Killian tells her there’s always Sochi in 2014.

                             *************************************************

              Emma is 20 and Killian is 23 when they go into the Olympics as the favorites and the reigning World Champions. Everyone wants to know why they’re skating has changed so much since four years ago. How are they so much more in sync? Why is their artistry so much more mature?

              Emma sees a glint in Killian’s eye when he answers, and she hopes it doesn’t translate to the cameras. He gives a vague answer about their more rigorous training schedule and how they aren’t teenagers anymore.

              Later, in the privacy of Emma’s room, Killian pauses in the path his lips are making up the inside of Emma’s thigh to hover over her lips instead.

              “What if I told that sportscaster that our skating has changed because I now know what you taste like?” He’s giving her a positively sinful grin, his hair all messy and his cheeks flushed.

              Emma just rolls her eyes and tells him he talks too much.

              A few days later, they skate their personal best. But so does the Russian pair, and in the end they go home with silver. But all the media can keep talking about is the way Emma and Killian had celebrated on the ice at the end of the routine.

              Well, it _was_ a pretty passionate kiss.

                             ************************************************

              Emma is 24 and Killian is 27 when they go to their third Olympics in PyeongChang. They just lost the National Championships to an up and coming teenage brother-sister team. The buzz from the media is that Swan/Jones have lost their chance at a gold medal. Little do they know how much Emma and Killian love proving people wrong.

              Funny thing is, when they get home with gold medals around their necks, all the media wants to talk about is the ring on Emma’s finger.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * Several people asked for more of this story, and the Olympics inspired me, so here's a second chapter!  
> * This isn't a sequel. It is instead filling in more of the story I started in the first chapter. This one deals more with the details of their relationship and how it developed. Therefore, it has more angst. I also tried really hard to keep the simplicity of storytelling that I used in the first chapter. It was a little harder with what I wanted to do, but I hope I managed to continue the same tone.   
> * Two scenes in this had outside inspiration. The elevator scene I adapted from the movie The Cutting Edge. It was my favorite movie as a teenager, so I couldn't help myself :) The other inspiration is a video of ice dancers Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir playing the Newlywed Game.

Emma is 11 and Killian is 14 the first time he calls her a tough lass. They’re finally old enough with enough experience to attempt a throw. First in the gym, then on the ice. Either way, Emma takes the brunt of the abuse, falling again and again and again before they get it right. Yet every single time, she picks herself up, lips set in a firm line, muttering, “again.”

After practice, she has to ice both hips while Killian ices his shoulder and elbow. He winces when he sees her bruises, then gazes at her with admiration as he says, “You’re a tough lass, Swan.”

At least lass is better than baby.

              *******************************************************

Emma is 13 and Killian is 16 the first time he gets overprotective. He’s in high school and driving now between practice and school, while Emma still walks the three blocks between the rink and her junior high school.

A couple of weeks into the school year, a senior from Killian’s school named Neal takes notice of Emma during her walks, especially in the morning. He cruises along the curb, talking to her, complimenting her, and yes, flirting with her.

Killian warns her he’s a loser who has a reputation for trolling younger girls. “Our school isn’t even on the way to yours, Emma! That guy is a creeper!”

Killian’s lectures only make Emma pissed. He’s treating her like a baby, as usual. And Neal’s attention feels good, she won’t lie. He tells her she’s beautiful, and she blushes. He says something slightly suggestive, and she giggles. The more Killian clenches his jaw and fumes and worries, the more she flirts with Neal. Until finally, one day, he offers her a ride, and Emma accepts.

But as she reaches for the passenger side door, suddenly Killian’s arm is around her waist and he’s pivoting her away from Neal’s car just like when they’re on the ice. He deposits her with ease onto the sidewalk behind him, then hauls Neal out, dragging him over the console. Even though Neal outweighs Killian and towers a few inches over him in height, he’s easily toppled to the ground by Killian’s left hook. Then Killian’s on top of him, wailing on him with both fists.

“She’s only 13, you pervert! She’s just a kid!”

Suddenly, the school resource officer from the junior high is there. Killian’s still swinging as the officer pulls him off Neal.

“You stay away from her, or I’ll beat the shit out of you!” Killian continues to scream.

He gets suspended from school for two weeks, and Liam is livid. Until he finds out why Killian got into a fight. Then he and Ingrid are marching down to the school superintendent’s office wanting to know why a high school senior with two reports of sexual harassment against him is still allowed in school while Killian isn’t.

When Killian returns to school, he insists on walking Emma first, then going back for his car. The first day, he slings his arm over Emma’s shoulder and gives her a squeeze.

“Got to watch out for a cute kid like you,” he teases her.

Baby, lass, kid. Emma doesn’t think her status is improving much.

              ****************************************************

              Emma is 15 and Killian is 18 the first time he kisses her.

              But Emma doesn’t consider it a real kiss.

              It’s the first time trying a new lift on the ice. They’ve practiced it a dozen times in the gym, but the ice is always different. Especially the dismount. Killian’s blade hits a divot in the ice, and though he recovers quickly, he loses his grip on Emma’s arm.

              The ice is coming fast, and Emma screams, but before her head can slam into the cold surface, she’s jerked upward. There’s a loud snapping sound, and she screams again, this time in pain. She collides hard with Killian’s chest and he cradles her in his arms.

              Later, in the hospital, they won’t let Killian in to see her at first. Ingrid finds him pacing and brooding. When he sees Emma sitting up in the hospital bed, her arm in a sling, he chokes back a sob before striding quickly across the room. She’s frozen in place as he grasps her face in his hands and gives her a hard, swift kiss on the lips.

              “God, you scared me,” he whispers hoarsely as he presses his forehead to hers. But afterwards, he goes right back to the way things were before. Like she’s his kid sister.

              _S_ ee, she tells herself, _it wasn’t a real kiss._               *******************************************************

              Emma is 16 and Killian is 19 when she loses her confidence on the ice. She still blames herself for Vancouver, and Killian is suddenly distant. Their short program at Worlds is a hot mess. Emma falls on their side by side triple jumps, and Killian puts a hand down after their throw, which Emma pops out and singles. They also aren’t emoting like they used to, so their artistic score also suffers.

              They’re in eighth place after the short program, and Emma is devastated. She wants to turn to Killian, but he sulks off to brood at a club that Emma’s too young for. After a sleepless night, she decides the next morning to just confront her partner. Find out what’s been bugging him since Vancouver.

              Emma knocks on his hotel room door only to find Milah Shelley on the other side. She’s a 30 year old ice dancer who people call “Black Widow” behind her back because she’s gone through six different partners and slept with every single one. Emma blinks when she sees her, then mumbles that she must have the wrong room.

              Just as she turns to go, she hears a familiar voice.

              “Ask them for more towels, would you, love?”

              Emma’s jaw is hanging open as she sees Killian step out of the bathroom of his room in nothing but a towel. Her face pales as she notices for the first time Milah’s bedroom hair and the sheet fisted at her chest.

              Then Emma’s running, her face hot and her heart pounding. Killian’s calling out for her to stop, but Emma refuses to acknowledge him as she pounds the button of the elevator with fury. It can’t open fast enough, and Emma flees inside.

              “Emma wait,” Killian says, his hand stopping the elevator door from shutting, “just let me explain.”

              Emma manages to roll her eyes despite the tears threatening to spill from them, “Oh, you need to explain? Seemed pretty clear to me.”

              “No,” he argues, “I don’t think you understand –“

              “Understand what?” she yells back. “If you’re fine with that cougar getting her claws in you, then why should I care? I’m sure she can teach you stuff a kid like me just can’t.”

              She digs her sunglasses out of her purse and puts them on so he can’t see the tears glistening in her eyes. Once the elevator doors close, the tears turn to sobs.

              They don’t medal at Worlds, either.

                             ********************************************

              Emma is 17 and Killian is 20 when their skating career tanks. They can barely make the top ten at every competition. The experts all say they were just a couple of athletic kids with great tricks but no artistic ability or chemistry. They’re National title is written off as a one-time thing.

              Things between them are tense, and it doesn’t help that Killian’s still sleeping with Milah. Rumor has it she keeps asking him to leave Emma and be her ice dancing partner. Finally, one morning half way through the season he arrives at the rink looking like he hasn’t slept at all. He tells Emma that he broke things off with Milah.

              “I told her I would never be her partner. Apparently that was all she wanted from me.”

              Emma’s stance is frigid, arms crossed, as she rakes a cold gaze over Killian. She doesn’t want to feel sorry for him, regardless of how devastated he looks right now. So his heart is broken. Good.

              “What,” Emma snaps with a flick of her ponytail, “you told her you’d miss all those triple jumps?”

              Killian’s face shifts from hurt to shocked.

              “No, I told her I’d miss _you_.”

                            ******************************************************

              Emma is 18 and Killian is 21 when she decides she just can’t take this tension anymore. She picks a fight with him, which isn’t that hard to do these days. Ingrid has taken to simply rolling her eyes when they start shouting at each other.

              “What the hell was that?” she snaps, shoving at his chest with both hands. Only now her strength is ineffectual against his solid muscle.

              “A flip dismount, that’s what! We do want the higher grade of execution for that lift, right? Or is this another instance where I’m supposed to read your damn mind?”

              “Me! If anyone is brooding silently here, it’s you!” Emma turns from him then, slicing her skates across the ice as fast as she can. Ingrid doesn’t even attempt to stop her as she drops to the bleachers and starts unlacing her skates.

              “I’m going for a cup of coffee,” Ingrid mutters as she leaves her volatile skaters to fight it out alone.

              Killian sighs as he sinks onto the bench next to Emma. “Please, lass, can we talk?”

              Emma freezes with her hand still on her laces. “Baby. Kid. Lass. Have you ever taken me seriously?”

              She finally turns to look Killian in the eye, and his gaze is intense. “Of course I take you seriously.”

              “Then why have you been so distant? Is this still about Vancouver? Or Milah?”

              He shakes his head. “No, love, it isn’t that. Not any of that.”

              “Then what? Please, Killian, tell me!”

              His eyes dart from her eyes, to her lips, then back again. And suddenly, the air in the room seems charged in a way it wasn’t before. He swallows thickly, and Emma thinks she notices a blush rise up his cheeks.

              “I’m trying to be a gentleman,” he tells her hoarsely. “You’re young, and I’ve known you all my life. You’re like a sister. I’m supposed to protect you. I’m not supposed to be having these feelings . . .”

              He trails off, his gaze shifting out to the ice, his jaw clenching. Emma’s heart beats a rapid rhythm in her chest. Is he saying what she thinks he’s saying?

              “I’m not a kid anymore,” she says in almost a whisper, “and I’m certainly not your sister.”

              Their gazes lock and a conversation seems to happen between them where words aren’t necessary. Then they’re leaning towards one another. And then . . .

Then they’re kissing. It starts sweet and tender, then slowly heats to a steady burn.

              “Our first real kiss,” Emma says when they part, a bit breathless.

              “Real kiss?” Killian questions.

              “You know, instead of that sudden one when I was fifteen just because you were scared.”

              Killian shakes his head in wonder as he thumbs her chin.

              “Oh, Emma, that _was_ a real kiss. I loved you then. I always have.”

                            *****************************************************

              Emma is 19 and Killian is 22 when they take both their relationship and their skating to the next level. Emma had wanted it sooner, but despite the fact that she’s of age and they’re only three years apart, Killian feels wrong about “teen” still being in her age.

But it isn’t as if they haven’t already gone pretty far. So during a particularly steamy make out session, Emma yanks on his hair to pull his lips away from her breasts and tells him she’s ready. Once she’s made it clear she’s one hundred percent sure, he relents. He’s more hesitant than she is, knowing she’s a virgin. He strokes her face and whispers in her ear how beautiful she is.

It’s basically everything a girl could hope for her first time.

They’re skating changes almost overnight. Their choreographer picks up on their deeper connection and gives them the most mature program they’ve ever skated. It’s to the score from _The Notebook_ , and they skate it as if they’re telling a story. Of two lovers who always find their way back to each other, and in the end refuse to be parted.

Everyone’s talking about how their artistry and chemistry have finally caught up to their athleticism. Yet they still keep their relationship a secret. It’s fun, actually, the things they whisper in each other’s ears before and after each skate. Sneaking Killian into her room when they go to competitions, then sneaking him back out again in the morning.

But Killian likes to tease the sportscasters, especially when they inadvertently make innuendos. One asks them about their suddenly “deeper” partnership, and Emma’s eyebrows raise in warning as Killian tucks his tongue into his cheek and glances at her mischievously.

“Yes, I would definitely agree that we’re going _deeper_ than we ever have before with a new level of _maturity_ in our choreography.”

Emma digs her elbow into his ribs to get him to shut up and takes over the interview. Thankfully, the sportscaster is oblivious and asks about their throw triple axle.

They win back their National title and go on to win gold at Worlds, too. Sochi, look out, here come Swan and Jones.

              *****************************************************

Emma is 20 and Killian is 23 and they are among the top skaters looking to win gold in Sochi. They’re chemistry has gotten so electrifying on the ice that people actually “ship” them as a romantic couple. Still they choose to keep that part of their lives a secret.

Leading up to the games, a sportscaster with NBC decides to play a version of “The Newlywed Game” with the pairs skaters and ice dancers who are favored for gold in Sochi. Emma and Killian, partners since childhood, are leaving the rest of their fellow skaters in the dust. Maybe he gets swept up in the game. Maybe it’s the whole “Newlywed” theme. Whatever it is, Killian almost slips about their relationship on the last question.

The sportscaster asks, “Who’s more likely to sleep in?” They both easily get the right answer: “Emma,” but then Killian quips:

“If I let her sleep, that is.”

He says it kind of cheekily and doesn’t realize what’s just slipped out of his mouth until everyone else starts to laugh. He catches Emma’s eye, both of them blushing furiously.

Emma attempts to cover for them. “Yeah, Killian’s always been my alarm clock, even as kids.”

The clip goes viral before the Olympics even begin.

              ********************************************************

Emma is 24 and Killian is 27 when they finally win gold in Pyeong Chang, skating to a medley by Christina Perri with her song “The Words” as the main piece. It’s lyrical, beautiful, and romantic. Their fans call it their masterpiece. Their critics call it their swan song. A lovely program for this has-been couple to say goodbye at their final Olympics. But it’s their turn for maturity and artistry to outshine flashy youth.

Emma thinks the night can’t get any more wonderful. She should have known Killian would find a way to make it even better. He sneaks her into the rink after midnight, the very ice where they won their gold medal hours earlier. Emma thinks she knows what’s coming.

She’s surprised when Killian sits down on the ice. Not on his knees, but on his rear end.

“Bring back any memories Swan?” he teases.

She laughs, “Yes, I remember a cocky twelve year old calling me a baby. I had to put him in his place, you know.”

Killian’s face grows serious. “The moment a fierce little girl with fire in her eyes sent me falling to the ice, I fell in more ways than one. I started falling in love with you that day Emma, and I’ve only fallen deeper since.” He gets up on his knees, “Emma, will you marry me?”

And that was how Emma Swan went home from PyeongChang with both gold and diamonds.

              ****************************************************

Emma is 30 and Killian is 33 the first time they strap a helmet and a pair of skates on their little girl. Two years ago, instead of being at the Olympics, Emma was bringing little Hope into the world. And as the nurses put that precious baby in Emma’s arms, it was better than any gold medal.

Today their baby girl is clinging to her daddy’s fingers with chubby hands, cooing gleefully as she shuffles her feet on the ice. It isn’t long before she’s shoving Killian’s hands away from her, insisting even after falling that she can do it herself.

“She’s a natural,” Killian declares.

“Of course she is,” Emma says firmly, “she’s ours.”

At the end of the day, Killian scoops up a sleepy two year old in one arm and wraps his other around his wife’s waist. They skate as one smoothly across the ice, heading for home.


End file.
